"We do get customers who say, 'Give me a 3D ski cottage with skis on the side,'" said Culinary Institute of Arts-trained manager, Stephanie Borrell. The ski lodge-cake was an actual order during the 2011 holiday season.

The bakery opened about five years ago, in August 2007. Last year, Dream Cakes won the distinction of creating the Radio City Rockettes' Christmas cake.

Dream Cakes creates sculpted and tiered confections to rival television cake kingpins. Asked what Borrell thought of such shows, she said, "When you do it, it's so much more labor intensive than they make it seem."

Borrell said sculpted cakes don't fly off the shelves during the holidays like "cake bites." A couple mouthfuls of cake, these little mounds come in a variety of flavors, like cookies and cream, eggnog, chocolate and vanilla.

"They're affordable, you get a decent amount and the selection changes daily," said Borrell. "They fly," she said. Pastries typically sell for $14 per pound and customers will receive between 12 and 14 pastries in each pound. Cake prices go up from there and are available on request.

Dream Cakes
is open Christmas Eve from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. and is closed Christmas. Although the bakery keeps pastries in stock for walk-ins, calling ahead is the best way to ensure you receive exactly what you want.